New Delhi:
A series of threats exchanged between senior military and political officials of Iran and Israel has threatened to destabilise the Middle East further. The latest warning came from Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) general Ebrahim Jabbari, who declared that Iran would destroy Israel as part of Operation True Promise 3.
Major General Jbbari warned that “Operation True Promise 3 will be carried out at the right time, with precision, and on a scale sufficient to destroy Israel and raze Tel Aviv and Haifa to the ground.”
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar responded, saying, “If the Jewish people have learned anything from history, it is this: if your enemy says his goal is to annihilate you – believe him. We are ready.”
Jabbari’s comments mark the third such threat in a week from high-ranking IRGC officials. Brigadier General Ali Fadavi, deputy commander of the IRGC, and Brigadier General Amir Ali Hajizadeh, commander of the IRGC’s Aerospace Force, have also issued similar statements vowing to destroy Israel as part of Operation True Promise 3, the planned third attack against Israel following Iranian strikes in April and October 2024.
The heightened rhetoric has reportedly coincided with an increase in IRGC missile production. Iran recently received a 1,000-ton shipment of rocket fuel precursor chemicals from China, claimed a report. Additionally, the IRGC unveiled a new underground “missile city”, an underground missile base “designed to target destroyers in strategic southern waters”.
The Jerusalem Post in a report citing a “soon-to-be-published article in Middle East Quarterly” quotes Colin Winston, a 30-year CIA veteran and former head of research at the American-Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) who argues that now is the optimal time for a joint US-Israeli strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities.
“Hezbollah and Hamas no longer pose a threat to Israel,” The Jerusalem Post quotes Mr Winston. “The Islamic Republic of Iran’s ‘axis of resistance’ lies in ruin. Both Iran’s and Syria’s air defence systems have been destroyed, and Iran’s missile capabilities decimated.”
Mr Winston claims that Iran is on the verge of producing enough weapons-grade uranium to build multiple nuclear bombs. He argues that relying on intelligence to detect an Iranian “breakout” is no longer a viable strategy and that “now is the time for Jerusalem and Washington to take decisive military action against Iran’s nuclear program.”
The Jerusalem Post report, citing Mr Winston’s article, says Iran has been enriching uranium to 60 per cent, drastically shortening the timeline for a nuclear weapon. According to International Atomic Energy Agency estimates, Iran could produce weapons-grade uranium within weeks, the report says.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi had warned in January that any Israeli or American attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities would lead to an “all-out war” in the region. Speaking to Al Jazeera during a visit to Qatar, Mr Araghchi said, “Launching a military attack on Iranian nuclear facilities would be one of the biggest historical mistakes the US could make.”
Earlier this month, the Washington Post, citing multiple US intelligence reports, said that Israel could launch a preemptive strike on Iran’s nuclear program “by midyear”.